• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.233-239
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• 2016

Purpose: Little is known regarding the factors associated with the willingness of family caregivers of terminal cancer patients to participate in a bereaved survey. This study aimed to ascertain the pre-loss factors that predict actual participation in a bereaved survey. Methods: We conducted a prospective observational study using data from two multi-center surveys at the end-of-life and after loss. In order to identify the pre-loss factors associated with participating in the bereaved survey, we used a step-wise multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results: Among 185 bereaved individuals, 30 responded to the survey (response rate: 16.2%). There were differences between the participation group and the non-participation group regarding religion, economic status, and perceived quality of care as assessed by the Quality Care Questionnaire-End of Life. A final multivariate model revealed that bereaved individuals who professed a religion (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]=5.01; P=0.008), had a high income (aOR=4.86, P=0.003), and satisfied with the care for familial relationship (aOR=4.49, P=0.003) were more likely to engage in the bereaved survey. Conclusion: Our finding suggests that improving the quality of end-of-life care may promote actual participation in a bereaved survey through easing post-loss distress. More attention should also be paid to those bereaved individuals who are hesitant to participate in a bereaved survey.

• Korean Journal of Hospice Care
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.42-49
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• 2005

To determine which are the culturally specific factors of Korean bereavement, this chapter focuses on the view of death and the traditional mourning process which reflect Korean values and norms. The formation of the Korean view and understanding of death has been strongly influenced by three of its major traditional religions: Shamanism, Buddhism, and Confucianism (Park:1994: Hao:1999) and Christianity more recently. Each religion has a different view of death and the appropriate expression of mourning. Korea accommodates funeral customs and rules strictly as a cultural system and has retained these traditions over a long period; hence, some of the traditional funeral rituals still remain in modern Korean life, although some of the rites have been simplified. We have looked at the various ways in which grief and mourning is displayed and shared in a collective manner over a long period of time. This fits in well within the other Eastern cultures that are collectively organized, and contrary to the Eurocentric models do not hastily seek to detach the living from the dead and recognize that grief is a long process, and different individuals may take different amounts of time to recover from the grief. The view of death and bereavement in Korea has sprung from the roots of three Korean religions, together with the recent addition of Christianity, although they mainly result from the three earlier religions. The beliefs of these religions are still closely linked together in the rituals of Korean bereavement on both conscious and unconscious levels. The influence of these religions is evident in practice through the bereaved family's mourning reactions, funeral rites and customs and its views about death. Korea used to have a period of mourning for three years, following traditional mourning rites; then the chief mourner and the bereaved families could return to their normal life. In spite of this long mourning process for the bereaved family, once the funeral ceremony is finished, people expect the bereaved family not to express their grief in public; even the bereaved family does not like to talk about death. The process for bereaved people is related to mourning processes in terms of detachment from the deceased in order to start a new life. Relatives and the community recommend the performance of the kut ceremony for relieving the grief of the bereaved. When one family member dies in an unlucky way, the bereaved family may have some fear or other psychological reactions of grief such as pain, depression, insomnia and nightmares, hallucinations or other physical reactions. Unlucky deaths give the bereaved a very painful time and these types of reactions are often more serious than reactions to natural death. But through the kut ceremony, the bereaved family can start to make a new relationship with the deceased. The taboo of this type of death and death generally remains a crucial aspect of the isolation that bereaved people might face and the collective nature of mourning(even where it is still present) is unable to address this aspect of the privatization of grief.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.33 no.6
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• pp.847-855
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• 2003

Purpose: This study was done to develop a bereaved family care program by identifying characteristics of a grief healing process in a child loss. Method: The subjects were five bereaved mothers who have lost their children with cancer. Data was collected with in-depth interviews using grief phase assessment tool and grief reaction assessment tool from 1, February, 2001 to 31 August, 2002. Data was analyzed on the basis of two tools. Result: Process of grief in general was as follows: evading phase was within one week - one month, confrontation phase was 5 - 12 months, and reconciliation phase was after 9 months and still going on when the study was finished. Grief reaction in five (physical, cognitive, emotional, social, and spiritual) dimensions was stabilized when the phase moved into reconciliation phase. Influencing factors were intimacy and expectation towards child, social support, personality, prior loss experience, coping style, religion, culture, family cohesion, openness of communication, and stress events. Conclusion: These results suggest that a bereaved family care program considering characteristics of Korean culture should be developed and activated.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.27-41
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• 2023

Purpose: Pediatric palliative care is a rapidly developing multidisciplinary approach that supports children with life-limiting conditions and their families. However, there is limited evidence on how to effectively support bereaved parents and siblings. The purpose of this study is to explore the therapeutic impact of art therapy for bereaved families, in accordance with John Bowlby's four-stage theory of mourning. Methods: This single-case study employed the consensual qualitative research method. Art therapy records of bereaved families were reviewed individually, and records from one case were selected. Verbal statements made during the art therapy sessions and photocopies of the artworks were analyzed to understand the mourning process of the family. Results: A total of 113 statements and 12 artworks from 19 art therapy sessions were analyzed. As the art therapy progressed, each family member exhibited a pattern of engaging in more positive and healthy conversations in daily life, demonstrating the final stage of mourning: reorganization and recovery. The family dynamics also revealed that they reconstructed their inner world and redefined the meaning of loss, which is the final stage of mourning. The art therapy provided a safe environment for the family, allowing them to fulfill their wishes and regain the strength needed for recovery. Conclusion: This study suggests that art therapy supports bereaved families in alleviating their psychological difficulties, engaging in a healthy mourning process, and functioning as members of society. Further research is needed to better understand the effect of art therapy as a bereavement support tool in pediatric palliative care.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.134-141
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• 2014

Purpose: This study was conducted to identify the current status of studies of bereaved families in Korea. Methods: We reviewed 97 studies of bereaved families, which were published between 1994 and 2013 in Korea. The studies were classified in three groups according to time, subjects, and topic. Results: First, the number of bereaved family-related studies has increased since 2010. Second, most studies focused on the whole family, and middle-age widows were also popular subjects. Third, the most popular topic was a relationship between certain variables. Conclusion: First, variables and their relations among themselves should be approached through an integrated study. Second, a systematic review is needed to assess the effects of interventions on the bereaved. Third, a qualitative research method is needed to broaden and deepen our understanding about the middle-age widowers, parents who lost their children and children who lost their parents.

• Journal of Convergence for Information Technology
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.259-269
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• 2022

This study is a descriptive research study to investigate The mediating effect of family Function on the relationship between depression and life satisfaction of bereaved older women. From March to April 2021, data were collected from older women over the age of 60 who lived in A city and experienced bereavement. Data analysis was performed using SPSS 27.0 Statistics Program. It was confirmed that family Function had a full mediation effect on the relationship between depression and life satisfaction of bereaved older women. Based on the results of this study, it is necessary to develop various programs that can improve family Function to help the older women who have experienced the bereavement of their spouses adjust smoothly.

• Journal of Families and Better Life
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.39-49
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• 2008

This research reports on a qualitative analysis of email facilitated reflective dialogue with seven college students whose parent dies. The study was exploratory in considering cultural values on intact family and asked the question: What do children experience after parental death in terms of the relationships with intra and extrafamily systems? Young adult children of single parent family expressed that they felt social pressure to practice filial piety toward their single parent. They made efforts to fulfill the social expectation and to achieve social desirability. Social stigma from extrafamily systems affected the experiences of the bereaved children. In terms of intrafamily system, young adult children tend to idealize their deceased parent. Single parents depended on the young adult children, which made parent-child relationship enmeshed or conflicting. The holistic view of the study highlights the importance of interactions between individuals and the intra and extra family systems when understanding family loss experience of the bereaved young people.

• The Korean Nurse
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.51-69
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• 1992

Grief that is not acknowledged and worked through may manifest itself in some emotional, mental or physical problem. In recent years much has been learned about coping with grief which the hospice program can utilize to help family members cope with their grief. This study was carried out to determine the helpfulness of the bereavement care of Severance Hospice and to learm more about the grief response of the bereaved. The tools used to collect data were an assessment form used in the bereavement program and the Grief Experience Inventory developed by Sanders and revised and translated 'by the researcher. Data was obtained from bereaved family members(54 for the final grief assessment and 39 for the grief response assessment) receiving bereavement follow-up, from July 1989 to March 1991. Results of the study were as follows: 1. Final Grief Assessment Regarding the resolution of their grief the majority of the bereaved accepted the reality of the death of their family member, while slightly more than three-quarters were able to express their feelings toward their loss. A large majority had returned to activities of daily living well or fairly well and had reinvested their energy in a person other than the deceased. In addition, the physical condition of the majority was good or fairly good. A majority of the bereaved considered the bereavement care to be helpful and almost three-quarters were not considered to be in need of more follow-up. 2. Grief Response Assessment Age was found to have a modoerately positive correlation to appetite disturbance(r=.41, P<.Ol) and loss of vigor(r=.37, P<.Ol) A moderately positive correlation was found between the number of contacts and sleep disturbance(r=2.38, P<.01) Significant differences were found between men and women in regard to guilt(t=2.38, P<.05), social isolation(t=2.44, P<.05) and depersonalization(t=2.07, P<.05) with men having the more intense grief. Significant differences were found in the grief responses of somatization(F=5.82, P<.001), physical symptoms(F=5.87, P<.OOl), appetite disturbance(F=4.40, P<.Ol), despair(3.79, P<,Ol), anger(Fp2.83, P<.05), social isolation(F=3.61, P<.05), guilt(F=3.62, P<.05) and depersonalization (F = 2.58, P <.05). In the first six of these grief responses mothers scored highest, followed by husbands and then wives, In the grief response of guilt, daughters scored highest and on the grief response of depersonalization sons scored highest. Only one grief response, that of sleep disturbance(t= -2.19, P<.05) was found to be statistically significant, with those family members who died at home having the higher scores. Based on the results of this study several suggestions are presented as follows: 1. Since unresolived grief can have a detrimental effect on the bereaved person's mental and phys. ical health it would be good for the nurse, to include questions related to death of family members and the bereaved person's response to the grief, in her nursing assessment. And in the case of unresolved grief the nurse should encourage the person to talk with a trusted friend or counselor and express their fellings of grief. 2. A study to determine the degree of resolution of the grief of those in the bereavement program could be carried out by use of the Grief Experience Inventory early in their bereavement and again 13 months after the death of their family member. 3. A comparison of the grief response of the bereaved in the bereavement program and bereaved not in the program could be carried out using the Grief Experience Inventory. 4. After bereavement programs have been started in other hospice programs it would be good to carry out a joint study of bereavement outcomes of those in the bereavement programs.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.91-100
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• 1999

Purpose : This study was performed to investigate the satisfaction in the hospice services provided for inpatient families and bereaved families whose members had been admitted to the hospice unit at Kangnam St. Mary's Hospital to improve the quality of care for the terminally ill patients and their families. Methods : This sample consisted of 33 families of hospice patients during the period of April to lune, 1998 and 30 bereaved families whose patients had died from March, 1993 to March, 1998. The data were collected through a self-report questionnaire and analyzed using t-test and ANOVA. Results : 1) The satisfaction level of inpatient families and bereaved families showed the mean value of 3.5 where the highest value is 5.0. 2) According to age, the level of satisfaction of inpatient families had significant differences in the fields of hospice philosophy, support for the family, medical management and nursing management(P=0.0001). The level of satisfaction of bereaved families showed significant differences in the field of support for the family, medical management, nursing management, and facilities of the hospice unit(P=0.0001). 3) By family relationship, the level of satisfaction of inpatient families had significant differences in the fields of hospice philosophy, support for the family, medical management and nursing management (P=0.0001). 4) According to religion, the level of satisfaction of inpatient families had significant differences in the fields of hospice philosophy, support for the family and nursing management (P=0.0001), but there was no significant difference for the bereaved families. Conclusions : The findings of this study showed that hospice services had positive influence on families with terminal disease such as cancer. To improve the level of satisfaction in the hospice services for families with hospice patients, we need to provide care by an interdisciplinary hospice team approach, and to assess needs of the families according to their socio-psychological characteristics. Further studies need to be conducted with large samples.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.8 no.12
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• pp.256-263
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• 2008

Based on the analysis of criminal investigators' recognition of judicial autopsy, this study presented policy alternatives as follows. First, a procedure is needed that optometrists and investigators jointly make previous explanations to bereaved families the status of investigation and the results of examination to their satisfaction and collect their opinions, for the purpose of obtaining an agreement to autopsy from them. Second, the dignity of the dead should be kept. To this end, particular consideration should be given to women bodies. Also, we need to minimize the number of autopsy witnesses and obtain agreement from bereaved families when there is an on-the-spot study. Third, we need to establish a guideline that investigators could request a warrant later in certain cases of dead bodies. Also, if a bereaved family positively asks for autopsy, it should be allowed through tentatively named ‘Request for Autopsy.’ Finally, To make a careful decision on whether an autopsy should be made or not, we can form a joint investigation team of public prosecutors and criminal investigators; however, an autopsy should be done only if it is deemed inevitable, considering the bereaved family's opinion.